


And when you get there is a family waiting for you?

by romeoandjulietyouwish



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Crying, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hugs, Hurt Tony Stark, Hurt/Comfort, Parent Tony Stark, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is Tony Stark's Biological Child, Protective Peter Parker, Protective Tony Stark, Supportive May Parker (Spider-Man), Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2020-05-08
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:09:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,158
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23895112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/romeoandjulietyouwish/pseuds/romeoandjulietyouwish
Summary: On Peter's 16th birthday he receives a letter from his mother that reveals life-changing information.Prompts: Tony is Peter’s biological father, Tony gets hurt protecting Peter and Peter feels guilty
Relationships: May Parker (Spider-Man) & Peter Parker, Peter Parker & Steve Rogers, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 11
Kudos: 298
Collections: The Friendly Neighborhood Exchange





	And when you get there is a family waiting for you?

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MelissaBosquez](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelissaBosquez/gifts).



> Surprise! I'm pinch-hitting for the exchange! I hope y'all like this!

Peter’s birthday was never a big deal. Ben and May never had much money to spend on presents, and Peter never had enough friends to warrant a big birthday party. More often than not Peter’s birthdays always ended up with a movie night with either Ned or May (sometimes both) and Ben when he was alive. But this year Peter wants something different, he wants to celebrate with Tony as well. 

When he proposed the casual dinner to Tony, he had been expecting a rejection, that Tony would have something better to do than celebrate his intern’s birthday. But Tony had just smiled and asked what time he should be over. Peter grinned and gave Tony a big hug. 

That’s something they do now, hug. Peter was nervous about it at first, not wanting to pressure the man into affection when he clearly didn’t want it. But something changed after the building fell on him, Tony started inviting him around to the lab more and actually mentoring him. And Peter almost feels that Tony has taken on a parental role in his life, not that he would ever tell Tony that. Nonetheless, Peter has grown to care for the man, and he knows Tony feels the same about him. 

The doorbell rings promptly at six. Peter bounds from the kitchen where he had been supervising May’s cooking. He flings the door open with a wide smile, Tony has a similar one when he sees Peter. Tony is wearing a worn t-shirt and scuffed up jeans, looking nothing at all like the man Peter sees in the press.

Tony pulls Peter into a quick hug, “Happy birthday, kid.” 

Peter smiles, “Thank you!” He looks down at the bag of presents next to the man’s feet and sees it overflowing with brightly wrapped boxes and bags. “You didn’t have to…”

Tony waves him off and walks into the apartment, “Nonsense. It’s not every day you turn sixteen.” After dropping the presents on the coffee table, Tony walks into the kitchen, Peter following behind him, hopping up to sit on the counter while May finishes cooking. Tony kisses May’s cheek and tells her that dinner smells wonderful earning a smile from her. 

After dinner, more edible than Peter had been expecting, May leads the boys into the living room, sitting Peter before the pile of presents on the coffee table. Peter blushes, bashful at the attention and the amount of money spent on him. 

“You guys really didn’t have to,” Peter tries to say, but once again the adults wave him off, Tony pushing a present into his hands. 

“Open that one first.” 

Peter gives his mentor a questioning look but tears open the blue wrapping around a small box. The paper discarded, he carefully opens the box revealing a watch, a very fancy watch, or so Peter assumes. 

“This needs a little explanation,” Tony says. “This watch is more of a gift for May and me than for you. It will tell us your vitals at any given moment and connects directly to our phones and it has a built-in tracker.” 

“I like the sound of that,” May laughs, leaning over Peter’s shoulder to see the watch. 

Peter glares at them, “I don’t like you two being friends, you keep ganging up against me.” 

Tony chuckles, “It’s because we care about you, Spider-baby.” Peter rolls his eyes at the nickname, batting Tony’s hand away when he tries to ruffle it.

“Here,” May hands him a bigger box. “This is from me.” Peter curiously tears open the wrapping paper. His mouth drops wide open when he sees what’s inside. 

“May, how did you find this?” He looks up at his aunt, eyes wide with excitement.

“I have my sources,” May says mysteriously. 

Tony looks over, “Uh, what is it exactly?” 

Peter gapes at Tony, “One of the rarest Star Wars Lego sets in existence! They only made like fifty of these! Oh my gosh, I can’t wait to tell Ned!” Tony and May share a fond smile over the boy’s head. 

Half an hour later all of the presents are unwrapped and the living room is covered with wrapping and tissue paper. As Tony and Peter shove the paper into garbage bags, May disappears into her bedroom, only to return with an envelope in her hands. 

May takes a deep breath, holding a letter to her chest, “Peter. I have something else for you.” 

Peter frowns, sitting back on the couch, “You already gave me my gifts.” 

She shakes her head, “No, Peter, this isn’t from me. It’s from your mother.” 

“Really?” Peter’s eyes bug out. 

May nods and hands him the letter, “I have no idea what it says, but it was part of her will that I was supposed to give it to you when you turned sixteen.” 

Peter runs his fingers over the back, feeling the soft parchment. His name is printed neatly on the back with a small smiley face. Peter smiles softly. He takes a deep breath and breaks the seal, pulling out a letter in his mother’s handwriting. 

_Dear Peter,_

_Happy sixteenth birthday! If you are receiving this letter, that means your father and I didn’t make it to your sixteenth birthday. I’m sorry, Peter. Know that your father and I love you very very much and even though we are gone we are still with you, looking out for you._

_At the time I am writing this, you have just passed your third birthday. You are such a curious child and you look at the world as if it is one big question you don’t understand. I hope you never lose that spark. You’re going to be a great leader someday, I can tell. But no matter what you choose to do with your life, your father and I will always be so proud of you._

_I wanted to write this letter years in advance, just in case something happened to me or your father before we could tell you in person. Peter, no one knows what I am about to tell you, the only people who know are your dad and I._

_Peter, Richard Parker is not your biological father. Anthony Stark is._

_I know you’re probably upset by this news and rightfully so. I kept this secret from you your entire life. But I want you to know that Tony is a good man, despite what the media wants you to believe. He doesn’t know you exist, I didn’t tell him. I wanted this to be up to you, whether or not you want to include him in your life._

_I love you, Peter. Don’t ever forget that._

_With all the love in the world,_

_Mom_

By the time Peter is done reading, his vision is obscured by tears. He gasps for breath, holding the letter tight to his chest. Could it really be true? 

“Peter?” Tony squeezes his leg and Peter whips to look at him. “What’s going on, buddy?” Peter finds it impossible to look Tony in the eyes. Tony is his...father. Peter just shakes his head and pushes Tony away from him, pretending not to see the hurt look in the man’s eyes. 

“Oh my god,” Peter says to himself. The two adults watch him nervously as he cries, reading over the letter again, maybe he read it wrong. He didn’t. Tony is his father. 

“Peter, honey?” May kneels in front of him. “Are you okay?” 

Peter shakily offers May the letter, she bypasses it and gives Peter a tight hug, letting him cry into her shoulder for a few seconds. May pulls back just enough to kiss Peter’s forehead. Peter pushes out of her embrace. 

“Read this...please,” Peter forces the letter into her hand. She frowns at him, but nods, looking down at the page.

Peter stands slowly as May sits down on the couch. “I’m sorry,” he tells Tony before he bolts out of the living room and into his bedroom, closing the door behind him. 

Peter throws himself onto his bed, sobbing heavily into his pillows. Tony is his father. 

Does that mean his mother cheated on his- Richard? Did May really not know? Did _Tony_ really not know? Did Richard even love him? Or was Peter just a child he was forced into loving? 

What is Tony going to think? 

Does Tony want to be a dad? Is this going to destroy their relationship?

Questions keep rolling into Peter’s mind, he can’t seem to stop them. Nothing makes sense anymore. He feels as though his whole life has been knocked over with a gust of wind. Peter doesn’t know how long he sobs into his pillows, but eventually, the tears subside, and Peter curls into a ball, pulling his blankets over his head. 

“Peter?” May knocks her knuckles lightly on the door. “Can I come in, sweetie?” 

“It’s open,” Peter tells her. 

He hears the door creak open and May’s feet padding across the carpet. May sits on the edge of his bed, “Tony’s gone. He thought it would be best to let us talk.” 

“Did you tell him what’s going on?” Peter asks, his voice muffled from under his blankets. 

“I didn’t,” May rubs his arm. “I figured that decision should be up to you when you’re ready.”

May lets silence fall between then, waiting for Peter to talk. Peter takes a deep breath and sits up, the blankets falling around his waist.

“Did my dad, Richard, love me?” Peter asks, his voice small. 

“Oh, sweetheart,” May lifts Peter into her arms, letting herself bear his weight. “He loved you so much. He used to carry a picture of you in his wallet and whenever he felt stressed or anxious he would take it out and look at it for a few seconds, it always made him smile. I asked him about it once and he just smiled and said that he could never be sad or anxious or stressed when he saw your face. He loved you more than anything in the world, Peter.” 

“Really?” Peter sniffs, looking up at his aunt with teary eyes. 

May touches his cheek and nods, “If there was ever a man destined to be a father, it was Richard Parker.”

Peter hugs his aunt tightly then pulls back and looks at his aunt, struck with a sudden realization, “Wait...does that mean we’re not related? Because if Ben and my dad were brothers but Tony is my dad, then we’re not-”

May pulls him into a tight hug, “Shh… That doesn’t matter, Peter. You should know by now that family is so much more than blood. We make our own families. And if our family is a teenage boy and his weirdo aunt,” Peter laughs, “that’s okay. It doesn’t matter if we’re related, sweetheart, because I love you no matter what. Okay?” 

Peter nods, “Is it okay...if I want Tony to be part of our family?” 

May smiles and cups his cheeks, “Of course it is. Is that what you want?” Peter nods. “Then why don’t you call him and ask him to come back over tomorrow so we can tell him everything okay? You and me together.” 

Peter nods again, giving May one more tight hug before she kisses his head, “Get some sleep, honey,” and leaves the room, closing the door behind her. Peter takes a deep breath and grabs his phone. He quickly mops up his tears before pressing the button to call Tony. 

“Hey, Pete,” Tony answers on the first ring. “You okay?”

“Um, I think so. I’m sorry about tonight, I didn’t mean for that to happen.” Peter tugs at a string on his pillowcase. 

“It’s okay,” Tony says easily. “I still had a nice time tonight.”

“Would you be able to come by the apartment tomorrow? I-I need to talk to you.” Peter asks.

“Sure thing, is everything alright? You seemed kind of upset.” 

Peter looks down, “I, uh, I got some really really big news in the letter my mom wrote me.”

“Okay, kid. I- shit!” Tony exclaims. All of a sudden Peter hears running feet. “How soon can you swing to Brooklyn?”

“I can be there in like...eight minutes. What’s going on?” Peter is already tugging on his suit. 

“We don’t know, but it’s something big. We need all hands on deck.” Peter knows he means it. There is no chance in hell that Tony would let him tackle an Avengers level threat, especially after he broke down in front of the man unless it was serious. 

“I’m on my way,” Peter says quickly. “See you soon.” He hangs up and tugs on his mask, having Karen message his aunt as he leaps out the window. He swings to Brooklyn quickly, seeing flashes of yellow and green light in the distance.

“Hey, guys!” Peter lands on a rooftop, watching as the Avengers jump into action against what seems to be three wizards. “Where can I help?” 

“Stay up high,” Steve commands. “Get any civilians out if you can, keep the area clear for us. Got it?”

“Got it!” Peter swings into action. 

“If you feel too over your head, you tap out, okay?” Tony asks. “No one will judge you if you do.” 

“Okay,” Peter agrees, though he knows he won’t. Tony asked him to be here, so here he’s going to be. Peter imagines himself tucking all of his feelings into a box, he doesn’t need to be distracted by his family drama right now. He then closes the box, wraps it in duct tape, and locks it in a vault in the back corner of his mind. 

Peter swings through the streets, shouting down to civilians that they need to clear the streets. The wizards above him drag cars and signs and trash cans from the street, hurling them at the Avengers. It’s only Peter’s spider-sense that keeps him from getting hit by falling debris as he rushes to get people inside. 

Peter snags a little girl around her waist and quickly shoves her into her mother’s waiting arms as a truck falls right where she had just been standing. “Get inside!” Peter tells her as he rushes to save someone else. 

“Peter!” Tony shouts. “Watch your six!” 

Peter turns around just in time to see the building behind him starting to collapse. He’s going to get crushed if he doesn’t get out of the way. He knows he can run fast, but probably not fast enough to be unscathed by the building. Peter is just about to try to run for it, when something slams into his side, shoving him clear out of the way by several feet. Peter jumps to his feet and looks to see who saved him. But all he can see is a flash of red and gold as the build collapses down. 

“Tony!” Peter shrieks. He runs toward the fallen building, scrambling up the rubble. All he can see are bricks and dust. Panicked, Peter starts clawing at the bricks. He has to save Tony. Then someone grabs him around the waist, pulling him away. “No!” Peter tries to fight the person holding him, but they just hold tighter. He needs to help Tony. 

“Calm down,” Steve tells him. “I’ve got you.” He crushes Peter to his chest, holding the boy in place as he tries to claw out of his grip. 

“I need to get Tony!” Peter shouts. 

“We’re going to get him out,” Steve promises. “Let us handle it.” 

“No! I didn’t tell him yet!” Peter doesn’t know if his vision is clouded from the dust of the tears building in his eyes. “He doesn’t-” Peter gasps for air, but it comes out as a tight wheeze, “-He doesn’t know yet. I have to tell him. He needs to know! He can’t die!”

“Peter,” Steve says calmly. “I need you to take a deep breath or you’re going to pass out, okay? Can you take a deep breath?” Peter shakes his head, he is honestly trying, but he can’t get his lungs to move any slower and take in any air. He clutches Steve’s uniform and falls into the soldier’s arms, his vision starts to go spotty. Distantly, Peter can hear someone telling him to breathe, but Peter just snaps into the blackness. 

* * *

Peter wakes to fluorescent lights above him. He blinks slowly, adjusting to the harsh light. A soft noise comes from his throat as he digs his fingers into the bed under him, trying to adjust to his surroundings. 

“Take it easy,” someone puts a hand on his chest and gently pushes him back into the bed as he tries to sit up. Peter looks to his left and finds Steve sitting in a chair beside him. That’s when it all comes crashing back down on Peter. 

The letter, the battle, the building falling and crushing Tony. 

“Woah, woah, woah,” Steve says quickly, realizing that Peter is starting to panic again. He sits down on the edge of Peter’s bed and takes Peter’s hands in his. “Everything is okay. We’re in the tower, Tony is alive.”

Peter searches Steve’s face for any trace of a lie, he saw the building crush Tony. 

“Tony’s alive?” Peter asks slowly. 

Steve nods, “We can go see him if you want. Bruce already cleared you.”

Peter nods and lets Steve help him out of bed. Once standing he finds he is no longer wearing his Spiderman suit, someone has dressed him in soft grey sweatpants and one of Tony’s old t-shirts that Peter had long since stolen from him.

Steve keeps an arm around Peter’s shoulders as they walk down the hallway. When they arrive at a door that Peter assumes is Tony’s, Steve asks him, “Do you want me to go in with you?” 

“Can I be alone with him?” Peter asks, his voice small. 

Steve nods, “Call if you need anything okay?” 

Opening the door, Peter finds Bruce checking over Tony, making notes on his clipboard. At the sound of the door opening and shutting behind him, Bruce turns, smiling when he sees Peter. “How are you feeling?” Bruce asks. 

Peter shrugs, “I feel fine. Is Tony okay?” 

“Yeah,” Bruce smiles. “Thankfully the suit managed to protect most of him so there’s not as much damage as we were anticipating, a few cracked ribs, a broken ankle, and a concussion. He’ll be fine in a week or so.” 

Peter lets out a sigh of relief. Tony really is okay. He’s going to be able to tell Tony that he is his son. He hasn’t lost another father figure. But before he tells Tony there's something he needs. 

“Bruce?” The scientist looks up at Peter. “Um, you have my and Tony’s DNA on file right?” Bruce frowns in confusion, but nods. “Do you think you could run a paternity test before he wakes up?” 

“You think that he…” Bruce’s eyes are wide as he comprehends what Peter is asking.

“Please, don’t tell anyone,” Peter begs. “I don’t want to tell Tony unless it’s absolutely true.” 

Bruce nods and smiles at him, “It’ll be done as soon as possible.” As Bruce leaves he squeezes Peter’s shoulder reassuringly. It makes Peter feel a tiny bit better.

The slow beep of a heart monitor fills the room, ordinarily, it would hurt Peter’s head, but now it serves as a needed reminder that Tony is alive. Tony himself looks far worse for the wear. His face is bruised and cut all over and based on what Peter can see of the man’s body, the rest of him is the same. 

Peter sinks into the chair beside the bed and takes Tony’s hand in his own. He doesn’t say anything, he just fights the building tears. He almost lost Tony, Tony would have died protecting him. Peter would never have been able to forgive himself if Tony died. Why does Peter deserve to live any more than Tony? 

He doesn’t know the answer to the question. 

Peter just sits there thinking. In his mind he imagines himself telling Tony that he’s his son. Tony reacts a different way every time, sometimes he shoves Peter away and tells him to go away, sometimes he smiles and hugs him, sometimes Tony freezes and Peter watches Tony’s hardened mask pull over his face. 

Of all of them, that’s the one Peter hates the most, that he could become a stranger to Tony, someone he feels the need to wear a fake smile and false cockiness around. As Peter thinks, he feels his eyes grow heavy. Peter lays his head down on the soft bed and lets his eyes slip closed.

Peter wakes up to someone running their hand through his hair. Peter nudges the hand, trying to get closer, eliciting a deep chuckle from someone above him. Peter slowly lifts his head, Tony is awake. Before the man can say anything, Peter hugs him tightly, pressing his head into Tony’s chest. 

Tony grunts in pain at the impact of the hug. “I’m sorry!” Peter tries to pull away but Tony won’t let him move. 

“Just a little bit longer, kid,” Tony says into his hair. “I’m okay. Are you okay?”

Peter nods into Tony’s chest, “I’m fine.” He sits up, pulling out of the hug and looks at Tony with sad eyes. “Why did you do that? Why did you push me out of the way? You knew there wouldn’t be enough time for you to get out.”

Tony smiles sadly, “Did you really think I would have stood by and let you be crushed by a building again?”

“Why do you think that my life is more important than yours?” Peter asks.

“Because you’re sixteen, you still have so much life left, I wasn’t about to let you die when I had the ability to save you.” Before Peter knows it, he’s crying. Tony wipes away Peter’s tears, “Hey, what are the tears for? I’m okay, Pete.” 

Peter shakes his head, “I-I thought you were dead and you would have died saving me and I can’t-” Peter sobs. “I can’t let you die when you don’t know that you’re my dad and I didn’t tell you and if you had died before I could then I would have already lost my third father and I don’t think I could live through that again.” 

Tony is frozen, staring at Peter with a stunned expression, “I-I’m your dad? What do you mean?” 

Peter, still shaking, looks down at his hands, “In the letter from-from my mom she told me that you’re my biological dad.” Peter can’t stomach the thought of looking up at Tony’s face, seeing the disgust he must be feeling clear on his face. “I was going to tell you tomorrow. Bruce is running a paternity test right now,” Peter says softly. “I-I’m sorry, I know you don’t want kids and that I’m-”

“Peter,” Tony takes Peter’s hands in his own. “Can you look at me, bud?” Peter slowly brings his gaze up to meet Tony’s eyes. To his surprise, Tony smiles. “I didn’t want kids, but then I met you. You changed everything for me, kid. You made me realize that I can love people without hurting them and that I can be trusted to take care of a child.” Tony reaches up and cups Peter’s cheek, “I would be honored to be your father.” 

Peter smiles warmly and leans into the touch as the door opens and Bruce walks in, “Peter, the results are back for the paternity test.” Peter and Tony exchange a hopeful glance and Tony nods to Bruce.

Bruce looks at the weepy pair in front of him and smiles, “It’s a match.” Tony gasps and crushes Peter into a hug, one hand tangled in his hair. Peter feels Tony’s warm tears fall onto his head, he smiles. Tony loves him. Tony wants to be his father. “Congratulations,” Bruce smiles. “I’ll give you boys another moment, and Tony I’ll check on you in a few, okay?”

“Thank you, Bruce,” Tony says over Peter’s head. Peter feels Tony press a kiss to the top of his head and he looks up with a smile. The way Tony looks at him is so... reverent it's almost painful. 

"I have a kid," Tony says dreamily. "Oh my god."

"I have a dad," Peter smiles back. He lays his head back down on Tony's shoulder. 

"And I'm not going anywhere," Tony promises. "You're going to be stuck with me for a long long time, kiddo."

Peter can't help the smile at the words and nuzzles closer to Tony as the man traps Peter’s head with his hand and kisses the top of his head. “I love you, kid,” Tony whispers. 

“I love you too,” Peter responds, his voice just as low. Peter takes a deep breath. Everything is going to be fine.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Comments and kudos make my day! :D
> 
> Tumblr- @romeoandjulietyouwish


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